AFC South full of young QBs

Updated 10:48 pm, Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Titans quarterback Jake Locker (left) has learned from former starter Matt Hasselbeck, who has been key to the second-year signal-caller’s improvement.

Titans quarterback Jake Locker (left) has learned from former starter Matt Hasselbeck, who has been key to the second-year signal-caller’s improvement.

Photo: Joe Howell, Associated Press

AFC South full of young QBs

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Several stages of quarterback development can be seen throughout the AFC South.

One team has a rookie. One has a second-year player who started almost all of last year. Then the other has a second-year player who learned behind a starter last year only to take over after a season of tutelage.

The Texans are expected to roll through the AFC South, in part because of the quarterbacks they will face throughout the division. Houston is the only team in the division with a proven veteran quarterback.

All three other AFC South teams start a quarterback in his first or second year. Jacksonville starts second-year player Blaine Gabbert, Indianapolis starts rookie Andrew Luck and this weekend the Texans will face Tennessee's Jake Locker, now in his second year. While their teams believe in their talent, they are all early in the learning process.

“Just continuing to work on consistency,” Locker said. “I think that's what you're always striving for, just to be more consistent. And maybe where you're going with the ball and how you're delivering it. Just building off what you do well.”

More than a third of the NFL started quarterbacks who were in their first or second season this year. With less risk in taking a quarterback high in the draft with the reduced rookie wage scale that started two years ago, taking a young quarterback early doesn't mean committing as much financially, and so it isn't as weighty a decision.

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Twice already this season, the Texans have feasted on the growing pains of young quarterbacks. Gabbert, who was behind center most of the season for the Jaguars in 2011, threw for only 53 yards and had a passer rating of 62.3 against the Texans. Miami rookie Ryan Tannehill threw for 219 yards, but no touchdowns and three interceptions meant a rating of 39.

For Gabbert, the game against the Texans represented a step back after several steps forward since last season when he led the worst offense in the NFL, ranked last in both total offense and passing offense.

The Jaguars hired a new coaching staff with Gabbert’s development in mind. They hired quarterbacks coach Greg Olsen and made him the assistant head coach as well in order to teach Gabbert fundamentals he needed to improve.

Improving footwork and pocket presence were paramount.

“When we met Coach Olsen we kind of got his ideas,” Gabbert said. “That’s what I was comfortable with. That’s what I did in college. Having the ability to go back to that and match it up to the offense and all these different schemes, it just made me feel comfortable and it’s shown. I just feel better up there. I also had the whole offseason to work on it.”

Not having an offseason last year because the NFL locked out its players made Gabbert’s transition difficult.

“It’s crucial,” Gabbert said of offseason workouts. “That’s probably the No. 1 thing that’s made a difference for this team and I think a lot of teams in the NFL was having that lockout. You don’t know what’s going on from January to August. Not being in the loop, especially as a rookie, you don’t know.”

Having an offseason will make Luck’s transition easier, though easy is relative.

Luck threw for more than 300 yards in two of his first three games. Luck nearly led the Colts to a win over the Jaguars and a 2-1 record last weekend, but Blaine Gabbert threw an 80-yard touchdown pass with less than a minute to play to take the victory.

Luck’s accuracy at the NFL level is a work in progress. He has completed 53.3 percent of his passes for 846 yards, five touchdowns and four interceptions.

When the Titans drafted Locker seventh overall in 2011, he had a luxury neither Gabbert nor Luck have.

Locker had an experienced NFL starter in Matt Hasselbeck, the Titans' incumbent quarterback who was willing, almost eager, to help his development. That became especially important in a season following a lockout.

“He's a guy that I'm very thankful that I have the opportunity to work with every day and he's as willing to help me as he is,” Locker said. “He makes a huge difference. I've learned so much from him that I otherwise don't think I would have learned to this point. He's great.”

Locker's willingness to learn has showed in the difference in his play between last season and this season.

“He's believing in his receivers,” Texans safety Danieal Manning said. “When you get quarterbacks that can play like that, that start throwing to their receivers they believe in, they make plays like it.”